July 10

Amazingly, it was the second time in three months Police Scotland had failed to alert the public Hudgell was on the loose.

He first went missing on April 8 when he didn’t show up at court in Hull to be sentenced for arranging to meet a 12-year-old girl he had been grooming.

Lincolnshire Police extended their hunt to Edinburgh because of known links to the city.

But Police ­Scotland did not warn the public and failed to ask for their help.

The Daily Record was hours from publishing the story when Hudgell was arrested in East Lothian after six days on the run.

Hudgell appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on April 16 and 23 and was remanded in custody.

Bailed: Hudgell appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff's Court on July 1 (Image: Daily Record)

But at a third appearance on July 1, the Crown Office chose not to pursue three of 10 charges – including a serious sex offence.

He was granted bail by Sheriff Wendy Sheehan but he should have been detained and handed to the English ­authorities – but no one told staff of his outstanding warrant and no officer was on hand to serve it.

It left him free to melt away into the city centre crowds.

Police Scotland only found out the next day that Hudgell was missing – but kept the search a secret for a second time.

Lincolnshire Police told locals in Keelby to look out for Hudgell and caught him after a tip-off on July 9.

He was remanded in custody by Lincoln magistrates the next day and is due to be sentenced later this week for grooming and theft.

A Lincolnshire Police source said: “If we’d been told before the hearing that he might be getting bail or told straight afterwards that he’d been freed, we could have caught him earlier than we did.”

Scottish Lib Dem Alison McInnes said the case “should serve as a wake-up call to make sure that current arrangements are reviewed and made ­watertight”.

The Crown Office and the ­ Scottish Court Service didn’t want to comment.

The Scottish Prison Service said that, when given the right ­information, systems are in place to stop wanted prisoners leaving custody.

Police Scotland said they hadn’t tried to detain Hudgell at the court because officers were unaware he had been given bail.

A spokeswoman said the public had not been warned of his ­disappearances because “officers were following a positive line of inquiry” on both occasions.

Paedophile: Paul Vernon also went on the run after breaching his bail conditions